October 2010

TH E • Life at the Do Hop Inn

B U N OL OGIST •
•
Radical Rabbit update
Rabbits roaming free
Rabbit mix
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What’s News? Rabbit TV

Are you looking for
Calici virus warning something fun to watch?
By Norelle (Somerville, Victoria) Then you’ll love Rabbit TV!
9 October 2010
Rabbit TV is all about
After losing bunny No 4 (house bunny) yesterday I was bunnies, featuring Lola
totally devasated and took the remaining ones to the vet for McFuzbottom, our fabulous
a check. We also got the vet to look at the one that had reporter and host.
passed that morning to confirm whether it was Calici.
Lola McFuzbottom is an
She confirmed Calicivirus. enthusiastic journalist who
loves to go places and report
At the moment the others are healthy, but it happens so on what she sees.
quick. All I observed was that a rather social bunny became
withdrawn, off food and gone within hours.

Years ago I had all my buns immunized against Calici, but

You can see Lola’s stories
made the decision not to do it anymore because it didn't on Rabbit TV
prevent them getting Myxo.
www.rabbittv.blogspot.com
We have been here 17yrs and done everything we can to
prevent mozzies getting to the bunnies. No probs until now.
Over winter I back off with the mozzie prevention and was
late getting it back on. I have to live with my decisions now.
It is the loss that we have to deal with now.
What’s On??
Calici has been reported from local suburbs in Melbourne. Melbourne
Please vaccinate your bunnies against calici. The World Vegan Day
vaccination covers your rabbit for 12 months. Date: Sunday 31 October
Time: 10am – 5pm
Place: Abbotsford Convent, 1 St Heliers Street, Abbotsford
Myxo warning FREE ENTRY
With all the rain that Australia has been experiencing this
year, there are increasing dangers that the spread of
Sydney
Cruelty Free Festival
myxomatosis (and calici) will be in an area near you.
Date: Sunday 7 November
Time: 10am – 7pm
The heavy rain has caused large masses of stagnant water
Place: Belmore Park, Haymarket
where mosquitoes are breeding. Mosquitoes, fleas and
FREE ENTRY
wild rabbits spread the fatal disease to domestic rabbits.

There have already been reports of myxo in the Ballarat Perth

area in Victoria with the expectation that this fatal disease Cruelty Free Festival
will spread across most states this summer. Date: Saturday 30 October
Time: 10am-2pm
There is no vaccine for myxo in Australia. Please keep Place: Earthwise Community Centre, 315 Bagot Road,
your rabbits safe, preferably indoors. If your bunny must Subiaco
be outside, please insect proof all outdoor enclosures and FREE ENTRY
keep wild rabbits away from your domestic bunnies.
 Life at the Do Hop Inn
By Karen

This month has been quite a stressful & difficult month at

the Do Hop Inn.

Early September we lost our very first bunny, Dingleberry.

Dingy was just about to turn nine years of age so we were
looking forward to her birthday. Instead, she suddenly
passed away. We were very upset but she wasn’t suffering
from any prior illness so we can only guess it was just her
time.

Stuart Little
Then… Lulu became unwell again! Lulu’s problems with
her colon & bladder (caused by scar tissue) meant that she
became quite constipated again. Never have I had a more
stressful four days than worrying about Lulu. She required
all kinds of medications to try & move things through –
fluids, critical care, laxatives & ….. enemas! Not fun for her
or me!

Happily, four days later and things finally started to move.

Lulu was so tired (so was I) but she was physically
exhausted and has lost quite a bit of weight after the event.

She is much better now but we can never tell when her
Dingleberry problem will occur again.

A few weeks later, our Peanut was very unwell. His tummy
felt very hard and it was confirmed to be a stomach
impaction. He unfortunately did not survive and we are
now looking after his lifelong partner Stuart Little.

Peanut was a little street bunny and extremely friendly to

everyone & all buns. We have very fond memories of
Peanut as he loved to jump and play and was well known
for climbing very high. He was such a funny bunny and
we’ll miss him.

Lulu
The good news is that we have bonded Ginger & Molly!!
They are such a gorgeous and happy couple.

It really is wonderful to see two bunnies who have never

had a bunny friend enjoying each other’s company. They
snuggle and lie together – just fabulous!! It’s love!!!

Peanut
Stuart was very closely bonded to Peanut and has never
been friendly to any other bunnies. Peanut & Stuart were
living in our studio recently so Stuart has now moved into
the house with us so we can look after him (he’s completely
blind). An attempt to bond him with Ally didn’t work
unfortunately but he doesn’t mind sharing a room with Ally
as long as there is a barrier between them.
 Radical Rabbit Update What’s wrong with
rabbit mix?
by Karen

It’s available in the supermarket, it’s sold in pet stores and

many people assume that rabbit mix is what rabbit’s need
to eat.

The mix is very sweet & irresistible, however, this is

because it is like feeding your bunny lollies all day, every
day.
www.radicalrabbit.org
Rabbit mix can cause
Radical Rabbit has been busy this month meeting lots of obesity, dental problems
people and chatting about the many issues that face and digestive issues.
domestic rabbits.
So, let’s go through the
Early October, Radical Rabbit’s first appearance was at ingredients of rabbit mix to
Edgar’s Mission on World Animal Day. The day was a see why it shouldn’t be on
huge success and wonderful to meet so many supportive your shopping list.
people.

You can see what happened on the day on Rabbit TV

Pellets
http://rabbittv.blogspot.com/2010/10/world-animal-day-at-
The pellets that are in rabbit mix are poor quality, high in fat
edgars-mission.html
& salt and low in fibre.
The next appearance for Radical Rabbit will be at World
Vegan Day on Sunday 31 October at the Abbotsford Bird seed
Convent. It should be a really fun day so come along and Small seeds can cause stomach impactions in rabbits.
say hello!!! They are hard to digest and hard to move through the
colon.

Be safe, not sorry!
The idea of letting your rabbit roam free might sound like a
way to give your rabbit the space, freedom & exercise that
they need. Unfortunately, most of the time rabbits that are
allowed to run loose, the outcome is not so wonderful.
Sunflower seeds
Full of high levels of fat!
Dried corn
Corn in general is hard to digest for humans and animals.
It serves no benefit as a food for rabbits fresh or dry. As a
dried food, corn has been known to cause fatalities in
animals due to a bacteria that it can carry.

Rabbits are prey animals. In the wild, rabbits will dig a
burrow to escape predators. The burrows that rabbits build
include a social network with other rabbits. Rabbits never
live alone. There is always a bunny looking out for the
others so they can thump their back leg to notify other
bunnies of danger nearby so they can flee when faced with
danger.
When a rabbit (particularly a single bunny) is left to roam
free, life is stressful, not fun.
The most dangerous aspect of a rabbit roaming free is the
fact that there are also many other animals out there also
roaming free. When you are not supervising, be aware that
many predatory eyes may be watching your rabbit.
Recently there have been a number of reports of beloved
bunnies being killed by dogs. Never assume that your
rabbit is safe when you leave it alone outside.
Lucerne chaff
Lucerne is a high nutrient hay/chaff. Lucerne contains high
quantities of calcium and is too rich for rabbits over the age
of 6 months. High levels of calcium can cause bladder
sludge/stones in rabbits.
Mollasses
This is the key to why rabbits love to eat rabbit mix.
Mollasses is a super sweet syrup, a viscous by-product of
the processing of sugar cane or sugar beets into sugar. By
coating the mix with mollasses, the product is irresistible to
rabbits who LOVE sweet treats.
My best advice on rabbit mix is to chuck it in the compost
heap and run to the nearest stockfeed store for some oaten
hay!!!

Bunny Ambassadors in
Iraq
By Terri Crisp
Program Development Manager
SPCA International
I lived in Iraq for six weeks this summer as I took a
sabbatical to write a book about Operation Baghdad Pups.
It has been an eye-opening and inspiring experience in
more ways than I expected.
During my first week I noticed that in front of one of the
traffic police stations there were always a few rabbits
scurrying around in the grass out front. Each day I would
look to see if they were still there or maybe they were just
passing through on their way to some place else. After a
couple weeks, I had seen the rabbits almost every day
and it looked like there were at least 10 of them living in
this most unusual choice of a home.
Curiosity got the best of me, so one warm evening I
walked to the produce stand and bought a bag of carrots. I
strolled over to the police station with a local friend who
could translate for me. My most pressing question was,
“Are these pet rabbits or are they being raised for food?
I was quite relieved to learn, early in our conversation with
three of the police officers, that all 12 rabbits were pets.
They had been living there for three months and the entire
police station had grown quite attached, as had many of
the neighbors.
When a plump Tom cat came prowling around at one point
looking for a rabbit to eat for dinner, the police officers
immediately put up a tall chain link fence to keep out cats
and anyone else that would want to harm the rabbits. The
officers did not complain when the rabbits proceeded over
time to consume all the bushes that had been carefully
planted to spruce up the police station. These men
genuinely seemed to care about these rabbits and I was
delighted to have stumbled upon them.
It was quite fun when I sat down that evening on the damp
grass and pulled the carrots out of the bag. I was
immediately overtaken by 12 rabbits all eager to dig their
teeth into the tasty treats. With four carrots held in each of
my hands I delighted in watching the assortment of rabbits
chew away happily. All the while, the police officers stood
and watched with big smiles on their faces. They looked
very much like proud parents.
As I sat there, I learned that each of the rabbits had a
name and there were stories to relay about each one. It
was quite clear as I listened, these men took great pride in
the rabbits and I was thrilled to see this kind of
compassion. As many Operation Baghdad Pups
supporters know, we have learned that many of the Iraqi
people are not known for compassionate treatment of
animals.
Car-eating bunnies
invade Denver airport
15 October 2010
It seems that even rabbits like eco-friendly products,
maybe even a little too much. The little critters are
wreaking havoc on cars at Denver International airport
because they are munching on the eco-friendly wiring that
is made out of soy.
Several owners returned to find their car would not start
because of chewed up wiring.
Denval airport officials claim they are aware of the
problem, but a solution has yet to be found. Officials
responded by saying that they had a fence in the area,
however as we all know from childhood stories, fences are
not bunny proof.
Additionally, airport brass is considering adding foot patrols
to the area to shoo the bunnies away.
Several car owners whose cars have been damaged
suggested signs warning customers to part at their own
risk.
How about “Warning! Hungry car eating bunnies on the
loose! Park at your own risk!”